Continuing Resolution for Appropriations and Historic Preservation Funding a Near Certainty
Contributed By: The National Trust for Historic Preservation's Department of Public Policy
Email The Author: pr@nthp.org
Website: http://www.nthp.org

House Appropriations Committee chairman David Obey (D-WI) has put a hold on all full committee markups of FY’09 appropriations bills until Republicans concede to follow the agreed-upon order for considering appropriations bills. The Interior Appropriations Bill, which includes funding for historic preservation programs, is at the center of this controversy which began when Appropriations Committee ranking Member Jerry Lewis (R-CA) decided to offer the Interior spending bill as a substitute during full Committee markup of the Labor-HHS spending bill on June 26th. Lewis wanted to expedite consideration of an amendment he planned to include in the Interior bill that would open the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to off-shore drilling. At this point, neither side seems to be backing down from this fight — which all but ensures a continuing resolution in the fall for Interior and the rest of the spending bills for FY’09.

However, the Senate is moving forward with marking up all 12 of the regular appropriations spending bills with the Interior Bill markup scheduled for the week of July 21. The House Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies has already marked up it’s version of the Interior Bill and provided $82 million for the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF), including: $45 million for State Historic Preservation offices, $7 million for Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPOs), $25 million for Save America’s Treasures (SAT) program grants, and $5 million for Preserve America (PA).

Reprinted by permission of the Public Policy Department of the National Trust